Hello and welcome to five minutes in nature with me Liz Scott.
Well you might be able to tell that I am not out in the middle of Dartmoor which is where I normally talk to you.
I'm actually in London and it's a busy old street that I'm walking and I'm walking beside a children's play area and I can spy a few trees that I'm heading towards.
Just want to get as close to the greenery as I possibly can as I speak to you.
And today's reflection is all about about unsettled thinking,
Fearful thinking,
Things that maybe you don't do in life,
Things that you feel that are for you to do,
Things that you want to be in the world,
To share in the world,
To create in the world,
But you don't because there's an element of unsettled thinking or fearful thinking or limiting beliefs.
And I've really been reflecting on this for me because I find that whilst I absolutely I love being with you guys on Insight Timer.
I love reflecting and sharing and being very present and authentic to what feels important to me with you.
I tend not to share myself more freely on other platforms or in other ways.
I tend to hold back.
I tend to play small.
I find that I've got a rush of unhelpful thoughts that come in and keep me from being authentically myself.
So today is a reflection on that.
And actually it was quite interesting because coming to London there was almost like a bit of a metaphor really of what goes on for me in my head when it comes to unsettled thinking.
So imagine here I was turned up at Paddington station and it was so busy and I felt very discombobulated.
There was so many people elbowing me rushing,
Knowing where they were going,
Me feeling like I was getting in the way.
I'm just a little bit sort of rusty on finding my way around London.
It was hot and everything just felt like I was on edge.
And that's a little bit like when I get lost in my unsettled thinking.
That initial feeling I got when I got to London was I was absolutely in that unsettled thinking.
I could feel it.
I felt like a tourist.
I felt like an outsider.
I felt like I didn't fit in.
And then what happens,
And it's really useful to realize this for yourself too,
Is that as my thinking settles,
It's not like the circumstances go away.
It's just that I feel more settled in them.
And so it was a great example.
I settled.
I had to take a bus journey.
The bus journey was absolutely chock-a-block with people.
The buses were not working properly.
So more people than usual getting on the buses.
We were all sort of like sardines in a can,
Tightly pressed up against each other.
And despite all of that,
It being hot,
Being hard to get any fresh air in,
Despite it being probably the worst circumstances that I could imagine being in,
I actually,
On that bus journey,
Just felt okay.
I felt very settled.
I kind of felt I found a peaceful space in myself and was able just to be present despite it being difficult.
And it just got me thinking about my unsettled thoughts and thinking and just realizing it's a little bit like that bus journey is that if I can see my unsettled thoughts and feelings,
Just experience them for what they are,
But not let them dictate my life.
That means I can still engage and be and share and do and be authentic in the world.
It's just that I'm not going to get lost and dictated to by those unhelpful thoughts and feelings.
I'm not trying to get rid of them.
That bus journey is a good example.
I didn't try and empty the bus or get the air conditioning on or run away from the bus.
I just was with the people on the bus.
It was an uncomfortable journey.
I can have uncomfortable thoughts and feelings and not have to get rid of them to find myself in a settled space.
So for me there is a real importance in being present to what feels like it wants to be said.
And being present to that,
And regardless of those nagging,
Unhelpful thoughts and feelings,
Is to share anyway.
Be present and share from that place of authenticity and see what turns up in the world.
So I don't know if that makes sense for you.
I'd love to know your reflections.
Let me know what you think.
What do you think about your unhelpful,
Fearful thoughts?
How are they holding you back?
How might you be in the world if you were able to make peace with them if they didn't drive your life or control your life but you just had them there as passengers in your life and accepted that they might turn up now and again.
What would that change for you in your world?
How would that be for you?
I'd love to know your reflections and don't forget I'll be back again tomorrow with another five minutes in nature.
